Feeling Good

We all realize - sometimes begrudgingly - that not all things in life go our way. We all experience setbacks and disappointments. And there may even be periods of time when we have to endure less than satisfactory situations in the hope that better times will come along. It is an aspect of life that everyone experiences. Consequently, this also represents a challenge that everyone faces from time to time: How best to get through it? How best to cope with unpleasant times and do so in a way that avoids sinking into attitudes of non-stop cynicism and despair? Good communication can help.

One of the main purposes of communication is to help build bridges between various publics. This includes identifying commonalities and potential areas of agreement. It also entails helping establish an environment in which members of these publics can be open, feel secure and appreciated, and have a sense of ownership in that what they say and do can and does make a positive difference. When people feel these attitudes, then the potential for their level of productivity and inner growth is greatly enhanced. Communicators can do this by helping ensure people are recognized for their efforts and establishing and maintaining ways in which they can interact and collaborate. The potential result is that it helps make people feel better about themselves and about what they do.

Those simple strategies and others are ways in which communicators can make a positive difference in the lives of those around them. On the surface, these communication steps might not seem magical, but the results they can and often do generate certainly are. What better way to improve one's own attitude, particularly if you have hit a rough patch in your life, then to do good for others? If this belief seems simplistic and silly, then so be it. But I believe the best way to feel good is to do good. In this case, it is through communication. Communication may not solve specific problems, but specific problems cannot be solved without it; nor may communication improve one's attitude, but by successfully communicating with others, one's frame of mind receives a welcomed boost as well.